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Rupee unchanged - Securities firm up
Mumbai: The rupee ended almost unchanged at 43.49 as compared to Monday's close of 43.4950/50.

Forwards market: The 6-month premium closed at 1.55 per cent (1.58 per cent) and the 12-month premium at 1.35 per cent (1.38 per cent)

G-Secs: Prices were up by around 25 paise due to the state loan auction and fall in oil prices. The 7.55-5 year-2010 bond closed at Rs103.08 (6.81 per cent YTM), up from Monday's close of Rs103.5 (6.82 per cent YTM). The 8.07-12 year-2017 paper closed at Rs105.65/70 (7.34 per cent YTM) against Monday's close of Rs105.28/32 (7.38 per cent YTM). The 7.38-10 year-2015 benchmark paper was traded at Rs101.55/60 (7.16 per cent YTM), up from Monday's close of Rs101.40 (7.18 per cent YTM).

Call rates: The inter bank rates were steady at 5-5.05 per cent (4.95-5.05 per cent).

CBLO market: 170 trades aggregating Rs8123.75 crore, in the rate range of 4.85 to 5.25 per cent were realised.
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RBI waives approval for project based remittances by foreign companies
Mumbai: Foreign companies that set up project offices in India can now remit money to India without permission from the Reserve Bank of India, said a press release from the RBI.

Currently, banks are required to obtain the RBI approval for opening of foreign currency accounts of the project offices set up in India by foreign companies.

Each project should have only foreign currency account and the payments should be made only for project related expenditure, the release added.
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RBI: On-tap sale of State loans closed
Mumbai: The on-tap sale of 7.77 per cent 10-year State Development Loan, 2015 for 25 States closed on May 17 after the target amounts were received. The on-tap sale of State loans for Uttar Pradesh will be kept open on May 18 to collect the remaining target amount.

The 25 States are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttaranchal, and West Bengal.

"Amounts of allotment in respect of these States are being advised to the investors concerned," said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in a release.

Investors will have to make payments by May 19 for subscriptions received or allotted on May 17 and May 18.
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SEZ goods sold to DTA eligible for 4 per cent tax sop
New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has notified that goods produced or manufactured in a special economic zone and brought to any other place in India are exempted from the 4 per cent additional duty of customs, and the revenue department has issued a notification to this effect under the Customs Act.

The notification has been issued after the export promotion council for EOUs and SEZ units made representations to the Finance Ministry on this issue. Earlier the Central excise department on March 1 had issued a notification exempting goods sold from EOUs and SEZs respectively to the DTA from the levy of 4 per cent additional duty of customs. However, the SEZ units were not provided exemptions from the 4 per cent levy by the field formations on the ground that the notification was issued under the Central Excise Act.
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RBI panel recommends merger of RRBs
Mumbai: The Internal Working Group on Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) set up by the Reserve Bank of India has recommended the merger of these banks in order to improve their operational viability and help them take advantage of economies of scale.

"The merged entities will have a larger area of operation and the merger process will help in strengthening some of the weak RRBs," the draft report of the Working Group said.

It has suggested two options - merger between RRBs of the same sponsor banks in the same State and merger of RRBs sponsored by different banks in the same State. This process, according to the Working Group, will bring down the number of RRBs and make it convenient for sponsor banks to manage the affairs of the RRB.

The Group has also suggested that RRBs should maintain a minimum capital adequacy level. According to the Working Group, Rs3,050 crore would be required to wipe out accumulated losses, provide for the NPAs and maintain five per cent capital to risk-weighted asset ratio for the RRBs in the existing scenario.

The Group has also suggested that the chairman for RRBs should be appointed from outside the sponsor bank. "As chairman of RRBs are from the sponsor bank, there could be several potential areas of conflicts of interest,'' the report said.

The Group has also recommended that RRBs be encouraged to distribute products of mutual funds and insurance and participate in referral arrangement to improve their non-interest income.
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DHFC board okays debenture issue
Mumbai: The board of directors of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation (DHFC) has approved the draft umbrella offer document for the issue of additional debentures of up to Rs500 crore.

The board has also approved the re-issue of 9,300 forfeited equity shares of Rs10 each to employees of the company, the company said in a notice to the stock exchanges today.

Approvals for investment of up to Rs2 crore in a new venture capital company and for reappointment of Kapil Wadhawan as Managing Director for five years with effect from October 4, 2005 were also passed.
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